Alibaba is set to add a beauty filter to its facial recognition payment system after users complained the machines made them look ugly.

The Chinese retailer announced on social media platform Weibo earlier this week that it was going to “make you look even prettier than with a beauty camera”, adding that it bet users they’d “be impressed”.

This comes after a poll run by Sina Technology revealed that 60 per cent of respondents thought they looked uglier on the screens of the AI-powered facial recognition scanners than on regular cameras.

Alibaba’s payment subsidiary Alipay, which has installed its facial recognition payment system in a number of retailers across China, said it will roll out the beauty app within a week.

Much like the facial recognition software that is used to open smartphones, the retailer allows users to link their face to their Alipay accounts and pay for items by simply scanning their face.

Though the software has not yet been widely introduced in the UK, various companies including Japanese chain FamilyMart, Brazilian retailer GPA and France’s Carrefour are all experimenting with the technology.